I was visiting in Denver near Washington Park last year, and as I got out of my car, I saw a big new house nearly completed in the midst of some very old and small houses.  I walked past it and there in a corner of this beautiful new house was a stone with the names of the owners and the date "2002 AD."  Clearly, these homeowners are staking their place in the history of western civilization.  They want people now and in the future to know who built the place.  Some people may think of this artificial nameplate as a cornerstone, but it is not.  A real cornerstone is the basis for the whole building, the direction it will face and how its walls are built next to each other.  A true cornerstone is vital to the building, the kind alluded to in our text from Ephesians two.  Apostle Paul is telling his audience that Jesus is the Cornerstone and that each Christian has an important role in the construction of Christ’s church.

          Christ wants to be the cornerstone of our lives.  He is the one who determines best which direction our lives will take.  If we build our lives on the principle of faith in Christ, we will grow strong and be able to handle the troubles of life.  But if we want to do it all ourselves, if we want to be the strong ones and not depend on God, then our house will be weak.  When the storms come, we will tremble and shake, maybe even fall apart.  Building our lives on Christ is not a sign of weakness, but of strength.

          I heard it again last week from the mouth of a celebrity, that it's not the destination that's important, but the journey.  It was said by someone from whom I would expect it, but I think it is becoming an accepted axiom - that where we are going in life is not as important as how we get there.

          Yes, how we live is important, but so is our destination.  If we live a good life and end up falling off a cliff, what good is the journey then?  If we try to do good but without faith in Jesus, we will end up falling off the cliff.  And there will be no bottom to our fall.  The journey is important, but even more important is that we are going to the right place.  And only God can help get us there.

          As we journey through life, Paul announces something big.  He says we are not aliens and strangers to God; we are now full citizens of the new kingdom, right along with all the saints.  By faith in Jesus, we are part of God’s house, a good and loving family living in a house built on the strongest of foundations, one that the apostles and prophets and Jesus Christ have built.  And Jesus is that building’s cornerstone.  He holds the house together and makes it built right.

          With Christ at the center, the house can't be destroyed.  It may rock and tremble, but it won't fall down.  The more bricks of the saints that are added, the stronger the house becomes.  After Jesus and the Apostles, come the Church Fathers and believers beyond who have added row upon row to the walls, making the house larger and stronger than ever.

          And we today add to God's house also.  We don’t yet know what the finished home will look like, and we won't see the finished product until we're with the saints in Glory.  But praise be to God we're a part of God's house.  Until the end of time, the Holy Spirit will continually add to His Church, the Church of Jesus Christ, and it will grow every day the gospel is proclaimed to all peoples and nations of the earth, right up till the end.

          It is good to know we are in the good hands of God.  Despite those who predict doom and gloom in the newspapers and the media, believers still live each day in God's hands, by His grace.  Though the House of God may seem imperfect or demanding or wobbly, or even wandering adrift, the true Church is built by the Holy Spirit and therefore will not fall.  With faith and love in Christ as its morter, the bricks of God's people are built into the walls that will not fall down.

          While visiting the old city of Israel's Bethlehem in 1998, our bus stopped at the Church of the Nativity.  It was great to see the oldest Christian church still in continuous use, built in 350 AD by Emperor Constantine's mother.  But Bethlehem is on the West Bank, part of the Palestinian Authority, and we were told to stay close to the bus.  When the church tour was over, Carol and I walked down some side streets to visit the Bethlehem Lutheran Christmas Church, about three blocks away.  After a brief visit, we returned by the same streets, and were met by our bus driver who was a bit agitated.  He thought we had been just wandering around, sightseeing the streets for fun, and he let us know this was not wise.  "Don't forget," he said, "You are strangers here and do not have the rights and privileges the citizens enjoy.  Be careful!"  Today I can assure you, I would not walk down those same streets.

          Praise be to God that we -- you and I and all believers -- have all the rights and privileges God gives to those in His Kingdom.  St. Paul says we are no longer strangers or vagabonds, but fellow citizens with all God's elect, the known and the unknown.

          When Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus, he was addressing Gentiles who had only recently become Christians.  He wanted them to remember their previous condition, and to give thanks to God who brought them near by the blood of Christ.  In that context Paul said:  "Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God." (Ephesians 2:19).   The words "now" and "no longer" bring attention to their new status, how they are "members of the household of God."  Because of the blood of Christ shed to forgive their sins, and because they had faith in Christ, they were no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.

          What a cause for joy and gratitude as well as obedience!  When you and I become citizens of the Kingdom, we are members of the household of God, and that changes life forever.  By faith we know for sure Christ is our Savior.  And by faith, we try to live as God's people should live, doing God's will, living each day for Him.

          One of our Confirmation youth, I am told, was with a group of friends who had come to be talking about God.  "All it takes is faith in Jesus," he said.  "Faith and repentance.  If you believe in Jesus and repent of doing bad, you are saved."  The young man had it right.  Thanks be to God he was listening in class!  St. Peter couldn't have said it better.  In Acts 2, after his famous Pentecost sermon, people asked, "What must we do to be saved?"  Peter replied, "Repent and believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved."  Just like our young Epiphany member said.  A Pastor explained this concept to his Confirmation class this way:  "Remember how you walk - left foot, right foot, left, right.  That's how it is to be a Christian.  With your left foot think "Repent," and with your right foot think "Believe."  Repent, Believe, Repent, Believe - all through life."  That's being a Christian.

          Yes, the journey of life is important, but even more important is the destination.  We need to be on the right road or we will never get where we want to go.  My wife and I were once driving from Brainard to Duluth, MN, on a lovely day.  It was a sunny day and we were just married and enjoying the trip so much.  But somewhere I took a wrong turn.  Instead of staying on highway 210 straight to Duluth and Lake Superior, I had taken a left onto highway 169.  We ended up in Grand Rapids and were farther away from Duluth than when we had left that morning.  We had to backtrack for hours to make up for that one wrong turn.  The journey had been fun, but it didn't seem fun when we realized our mistake.  Going to the wrong place can ruin a good trip.

          Jesus Christ is our cornerstone of life.  He is "the Way, the Truth and the Life" (John 14:6) - the Way to heaven, the Truth about God, and the Life worth living.  Let us all strive to build our lives on Jesus.  He gives us only the best.  Carol loves to shop at stores when the sale is "two-for-one."  That's life with Jesus - "two-for-one."  Jesus is the journey and He is the destination, "two-for-one."  In Him are are both sinners and saints, "two-for-one."  In Him we are citizens of heaven and earth, "two-for-one."  In Jesus we have only the best.  May we all build our lives on Jesus Christ, amen

Copyright © 2006 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.